Sugarcoat
by Shizune-hime
Summary: Yuffie and Vincent help Tifa out with her cake.  WARNING: Subtle  ?  innuendos.  YuffiexVin. After AC/ACC! ;
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:**_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

**01 : Bland**

"So! Did we do good?"

Yuffie Kisaragi looked up and watched the ceiling fan rotate as she chewed the forked piece she took from the sponge cake Tifa and her had just baked, with a frown on her face. Tifa, meanwhile, had a puppy-eyed look as she waited for the ninja's response, hands clasped together in anticipation.

"Well?"

"Mmm." Yuffie bobbed her head left and right, slick sounds made by her tongue in tasting. "... … … … Tastes ba—I mean bland! Bland. BLAAAND. Yup! Just lacks a bit more sweetness…"

Tifa stared. "Yuffie. Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying!" Yuffie shook her head. "I said, it tastes bland." After that, she nodded. "Just needs a bit more sugar."

It wasn't like Tifa didn't notice. Tifa whined as her shoulders slumped and her head hung low, and she shook it in dismay. "No… nonononono—NO!" The fighter sighed audibly and slapped either side of her head gently, looking at the cake. "Ahhh…!"

"Hey, stop that!" Yuffie reached over and batted her hands away, scowling. "Don't do that! Erm… eh, Tifa… we can always try again!" She smiled, hoping it would cheer Tifa up.

Tifa just stared at her. "What did you say?" To her, it was an unbelievable statement. She was extremely frustrated right now. "Did you say I could just… try again?"

"Well… yeah!" Yuffie cheerfully said. "I mean, we just need to look over the instructions, make sure everything's perfectly measured…"

A pause flew by. Like a tumbleweed just rolled.

"… … … … TRY AGAIN?"

Yuffie blinked. "There's no harm in it, right?"

"IT MEANS I'LL HAVE TO BUY INGREDIENTS AGAIN! Oh my Gaea, I give UP! This is the fourth time!"

Well… the ninja didn't know what to do anymore. But she knew how important this was to Tifa – Cloud's birthday was coming up tomorrow and she wanted to do something really special for him. She wanted to take back what she said but Tifa _did _tell her to be honest, right? Tifa, meanwhile, snorted and paced the wooden floor, hands becoming animated as she explained. Yuffie frowned while Tifa yelled in the bar. Oh, everyone knew what would happen once Tifa became frustrated… and Yuffie felt extremely unlucky she was seeing it. She wanted to just slink away.

"It means I'll have to WASTE money on just a simple cake I could just buy outside, it means I'll be spending CLOUD'S money, it means the kitchen will be a mess, it means it'll take AGES before I perfect this recipe, it means… it means…" Tifa scowled. "It means EVERYTHING right now!"

"Tifa, calm down!" Yuffie stuffed half the slice of her cake in her mouth, her voice muffled. "Well, it wasn't too bland; it just lacks sugar! A-and, more strawberries! The sponge is just a bit too – light? … That's why it doesn't have much taste—"

Tifa raised her hands as she scowled furiously. "OKAYSTOPIDON'TWANNAHEARIT." She sighed again, hands on her hips, as she eyed the cake.

The cake was fine, if anyone wondered. Or at least _just_ looked it. It was a dandy-looking, strawberry shortcake, its pristine cream or frosting was perfectly swirled and the strawberries finely aligned. It didn't look horrible, or at least from afar, it didn't seem to _taste_ too horrible. When Yuffie sabotaged another bite of the cake into her mouth she stared at it. In fact when she chewed again and felt around for how it exactly tasted, she realized it wasn't so bad after all. She wanted to take back what she said but she felt she might say something to trigger Tifa's limit break.

Just before the ninja could speak up again, Tifa huffed and said, "I'll be upstairs!" and marched up. A shutting bang of the door followed.

So Yuffie was left at the bar now, with a fairly big cake in front of her, and no one to share it with. Everyone else they knew was out – Cid was in Rocket Town again, helping the town create a rocket monument, Barret was busy delivering oil, Cloud was doing deliveries, Denzel and Marlene were in school, and … … … well, she didn't know where Vincent was, to be honest. Maybe in Kalm?

"Blaaaaaaaaaaargh."

Yuffie leaned down sharply and lowered her head onto the bar top, a resonating thud emanating. She didn't know how much it would hurt until her forehead hit.

"… … … … … OWW."

Talk about a headdesk!

Vincent Valentine hunched over on the edge of his bed, and analyzed the last diskette in his hands. The first 4 were already obliterated.

Everything was over now; things were calm and stable, apparently. He didn't know why he asked for the diskettes from Reeve and had a certain idea in his mind; in fact maybe it was a better idea to let Reeve do it. But he felt only he could banish the demons in his life, and … … … maybe doing this was the first step in eliminating those demons.

He stared at his phone for a moment. Usually, any from his friends called and/or left a message, but it seemed like today was a very empty day for that. He was like Cloud, though; he wasn't one to answer any calls unless he felt it was of any importance, or if he was informed that if a specific person called, he had to answer it (like Shelke's informative calls). As crimson eyes focused on the diskette in his hands again, and the fire in the steel bin nearby, he softened and reached out to toss the last Omega Report in the flame.

But, his phone gave off a well-known ringtone, at least to him. When he slid it off the night table and into his hands, he flipped it open – it was a message from Tifa, saying: "I give up!"

Vincent blinked at the message, wanting to reply, but suddenly remembered it would be Cloud's birthday tomorrow. He didn't know what Tifa had been up to lately, no one ever said, but he figured she was doing something special for him since Cloud meant so much to her. He felt like getting a gift for Cloud too. Vincent pondered on visiting 7th, and while looking at the fire in the steel bin, decided to wait until it died out. And then he could leave.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

02 : Gift

"We're home!"

Yuffie, her head still seemingly attached to the bar top, closed her eyes as she heard the kids' voices ring happily while they entered the bar. The whole round cake in front of her was just half-finished now. She unbelievably ate the half all alone.

Marlene skipped over and tugged at her shirt. "Yuffie, what's wrong?"

Yuffie only whimpered and waved it off.

"C'mon Yuffie, talk to us!" Denzel slid onto the barstool next to her. When he noticed the cake and the stirring bowl, the whisker, the ingredients all over behind the bar, he smiled brightly. "You baked!"

"I did NOT." Yuffie raised her head and frowned. "Your mom did." She sighed and looked at Marlene, whose doe eyes only blinked. The ninja patted her head, and the child smiled. "… I think your mom's going to Somersault everyone if people come in here and try to taste the cake, so I'm going to eat it all by myself."

Marlene rounded the area and stood behind the bar, on a specific stool she pulled out from behind that she and Denzel used when they would serve customers. "All of this? REALLY?"

"Yes, really." Yuffie rubbed her stomach and sighed deeply, feeling the gas inside collect. "… … … But I'm already full."

The boy smiled and slid forward just a little bit. "Well, we can help you—"

"NO!" Yuffie quickly pulled the round cake to herself, which was on a ceramic, blue plate. She took her fork from her plate and began picking on it inside, stuffing more of it into her mouth. The frosting and not-easily-seen powdered sugar was getting all around her mouth as she spoke muffling. "Everyone can't taste how bad this tastes like! I have to finish it. It's my duty right now!"

The two kids only looked at each other. Denzel shrugged. "Okay. You want a cherry coke with that?"

"… Do I get it for free?"

Marlene quickly got a glass from the rack nearby and hopped down, skipping over to the fridge. She took out a bottle, popped it the top open with a nearby contraption, and poured it into the glass for Yuffie.

"Just today!"

… Vincent wasn't very outspoken when it came to his emotions. In fact, last time Yuffie had a birthday, he didn't get her a gift. Same with Tifa's birthday. Or Cid's. Or Barret's (he did drink though, that night, and thought it was enough of an offering for Barret's birthday). Or even Rufus, when Rufus asked for all of them to come by a fancy hotel. Or Tseng's. Or Reno's, or every other possible person he knew. The kids, though – that was a different matter. In Tifa's words, he was "obliged" to give.

Walking down Edge's streets, he nervously fidgeted his phone and looked at every shop that lined the sidewalks. He saw one particular cake shop that caught his attention, where the endorsement outside was a well-illustrated (or Photoshopped) poster of Cloud holding a cake as he sat on his bike. A sign, most probably; maybe the shop had something Cloud would like, or Tifa would be pleased with.

He pushed open the glass door and stepped in. The lady wrapping up a cake box behind the counter greeted with a joyful voice when the chimes sounded as Vincent came in. The sharpshooter looked around – it was a fairly small shop, nothing too fancy, but it was warm and welcoming, hues of beige and pink as its motif. He looked at the cold, glass shelves where the cakes were found and peered at each one – Black Forest, Chocolate Mousse … Carrot Cake, Lemon Cake, Banana Cake—

One particular cake caught his eye, as he was hunched over. He smiled just a bit when he saw it, remembering the kids at 7th and Tifa and Cloud. He could imagine them all at the table, sharing slices of it with each other, laughing and smiling as the day went by. Vincent could imagine himself and his friends sharing the cake too – if they were all there on that day, that is, and if Tifa would let them – and talking the day away like good old friends.

"… How much for this one?" he asked as he pointed at it, a sharp, gold-plated fingertip just a centimeter away from the glass.

"250 gil, sir," the lady replied.

Vincent almost gawked. "Wait, what?... 250 just for a cake?"

"It's not just ANY other cake, sir." The saleslady frowned. "The ingredients are shipped all the way from Junon."

Vincent blinked as he stood up, folding his arms as he stared at the cake.

"You're not getting it, sir?"

… Vincent was fond of the color red, and how those particular red plumps just adorned the top. The sharpshooter sighed as he took out gold coins, counting quietly. He handed it to the lady. "I am," he said. "… Do you have a blue box for it? And a yellow ribbon to wrap it with?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:**_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

**03: Two Heads**

"… And then I kicked the hell out of them! They ran screaming like little girls. They were really afraid of me! HAH!"

Yuffie sipped her cherry coke happily, while the kids had their milkshakes and were seated on their stools, facing her. Marlene and Denzel listened as their favorite ninja lady told her story about how she chased off a group of guys who wanted all the materia she got (*audience jeer: "STOLEEEE."), when she was still living in Wutai. Apparently, Yuffie was a little 7-year old bully then who didn't want to give up so easily, and liked to challenge boys to tackle her and try to steal all her materia.

"'Course, they were afraid because my dad's really popular in Wutai!" Yuffie grinned. "They were afraid my dad would hang them upside down… tied to a tree… or he would make the dogs bite their butts—"

7th Heaven's doors opened and the light from outside glinted on familiar – VERY familiar – golden shoes. The three turned their heads and were surprised to see who it was, Marlene in particular. She was really happy that she immediately set her milkshake aside and jumped off her seat, ran over to the man and hugged him.

"Uncle Vincent!"

He welcomed her warmly as she rested her cheek on his tummy, little arms wrapped around his waist and smiling happily. Vincent couldn't help but smile at the intent, patting her head gently, his clawed hand behind his back to hide the box. "Marlene."

"You're our very first customer!" Denzel said. "Aside from THIS lady over here, of course—"

"Oh?... Well…" Vincent shook his head. "I'm not actually going to have a drink."

Yuffie pouted. "Hey I was here before the bar even opened! So, I don't really count as a customer."

A door upstairs opened as quick and as resounding as the doorknob was twisted. "Denzel! Marlene!" Tifa called from upstairs. "I'll need you both over here! Help me do the laundry!"

Denzel smirked. "I'll race ya, Mar."

"Heeeey!"

The two kids scrambled upstairs and to the laundry room, where the veranda was found, where clothes were usually hung. Vincent and Yuffie were left to stay downstairs, basked in the silence of the bar.

She folded her arms and eyed Vincent, a brow raised, and spotted the blue box adorned with a yellow ribbon around it as he took it out from underneath his cloak.

"What's that, Vinnie?"

The sharpshooter walked over to Yuffie as he put the box on the bar top. "For Cloud," he said. "Thought I'd finally buy him something."

Yuffie remembered the last time she had her birthday. _No fair,_ she thought, _Vincent's getting something for Cloud and I'm not getting anything!_ "… You know, I didn't get that for mine," she said. "… Or anything." Casually – or at least trying to be, she sipped from her cherry coke resoundingly, and blushed slightly. Hell, who wouldn't say she was trying to impress him or make him feel guilty?

Vincent nodded. "… Sorry."

"Meh." Yuffie shrugged it off. "It's okay. It's just one birthday anyway…"

Vincent saw the ceramic plate where bits of frosting and cake bread were found. He pulled it to him and stared. "You ate cake?"

"Yeeeeeah, well… eheh, Tifa wasn't so pleased with her cake." Yuffie sighed. "She was really disappointed that she'd been trying for four times now and still can't get it right."

"Oh." Vincent started to chuckle quietly, and shook her head. "Well… she'll keep trying. We know how she is."

"Well after today, I'm not so sure about that."

Vincent looked at her. Yuffie blinked.

"… Yuffie, what did you do?"

"You want cherry coke, Vinnie?" Yuffie gleefully jumped off her seat and ran to the fridge – clearly trying to change the topic.

"_**Yuffie."**_

"Whaaaaat?" The ninja huffed.

Vincent raised a brow, calmly repeating. "What did you do?"

An audible sigh escaped Yuffie. "I just said it lacked some more sugar!" She quickly, yet guiltily said. "She told me to be honest, I said it was bland! And she suddenly went all crazy, she said she was just going to give up baking another for Cloud because it meant she was going to spend more and she was going to buy another set of ingredients and the kitchen would be a mess because it means _everything_ to her right **nowwww**."

… Vincent took a moment to process what she said, and just smiled. He shook his head at the mere thought that Yuffie gave what Tifa requested – honesty. "What word did you say again? What did you call the cake?"

Yuffie coughed and straightened up in her seat, sipping from her cherry coke. "Bland. I said it was bland."

Vincent raised a brow. "Really?"

"… Are you calling me a LIAR?"

"I never said that."

Yuffie pouted. "Yuffie Kisaragi may be a thief, but she is NEVER, NEVERRRR a liar. Remember that, Vincent Valentine!"

Vincent sighed. His eyes started to fixate on the cake that he bought. He saw the leftover ingredients behind the bar – traces of flour were scattered on the dark marble surface, egg shells were there, the whisker was in the stirring bowl and the packet of cream was found. He had an intricate idea.

Yuffie pointed at the blue box. "What's that? A cake?"

Vincent nodded. "… Strawberry Shortcake."

Yuffie gave a "o_o…" look at Vincent. "That's what I just ate!"

Vincent's eyes widened slightly. "What?" he asked.

"That's the cake Tifa was trying to bake!" Yuffie said with a grin. She tilted her body to the side for a moment to peer up at the staircase. The kids' voices and Tifa's could be heard up there, and so was the droning of the washing machine. "…Hey Vinnie!" Yuffie then giggled. "I have an ideeeeea."

Vincent tried not to grin. "I hope it isn't the same thing I'm thinking."

"What is it?"

"Well…" Vincent didn't want to voice it out, or at least he didn't feel like it. He felt he was lying to Tifa and Cloud, and he didn't like it. But he didn't want to see Tifa upset either, just like he didn't want to see any of his friends upset.

"AHHH! I know, I know!" Yuffie beamed with a mischievous grin. She leaned over to Vincent's ear and muttered, "We're gonna put the cake in the fridge and pretend we're going to buy ingredients so we can make 'em think that this cake you bought is the one we baked, when we come back?"

Vincent couldn't help but smile. "… Yup."

Yuffie punched his shoulder playfully. "I honestly adore you for that!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:**_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

**04: Wavelength**

Yuffie ran up the stairs, grinning as she let Vincent wait on the main floor. She found the door to the laundry room open; Marlene and Denzel were busy hanging up clothes to dry, and Tifa was operating the machine. "Heeeey, Teefy!" Yuffie beamed. "I just wanted to say… I'm really sorry about the cake."

Tifa didn't say anything; only frowned as she pushed the 'Wash' button. "It's okay, Yuffie. It happens."

"Sooo… I was thinking... Maybe I could try my hand at baking? Since I seem to have said something wrong about the cake, well y'know…" The ninja scratched the back of her head. "I figured I'd do you a favor. Vincent's downstairs, I'll go work on it with him."

"Oh, GODS." Tifa slumped again. "He knows how bad the cake is!—"

"Teef, don't worry! He didn't laugh at it or anything. Vincent's too serious to do that, pfft."

Tifa glared. "Come on, Yuffie. Don't pull that on me."

"Okay, okay, sheesh…" Yuffie raised her hands in slight surrender. "Well… I'm gonna go buy some ingredients and come back, Vincent and I are gonna work on the cake, okay?" She came over to Tifa and nudged her as she grinned. "Don't worry about it. We got a plan!"

Tifa looked behind her shoulder and at Yuffie. "Well, fine then, okay…" she sighed. "If you want to, I guess I can't stop you." Tifa recollected her thoughts and faced Yuffie with a slight scowl. "And you better make it good then, since you insist!

"Oooooh! By the way, umm…" Yuffie eyed the heap of clothes. Considering they were three working on the laundry, she wondered how long it'd take them to work. "What time are you gonna finish, Teef?"

"Uh…" Tifa glanced at the clock on the wall nearby. "Around four, maybe… still have to clean the rooms here upstairs. I'm not so sure. So much to do…"

"Ahhh… gotcha, gotcha." Yuffie smiled. "It'll all be okay, I promise! `Kay then. Be back later!"

…And with that the teenage ninja scrambled down the stairs again. She saw Vincent standing by the fridge; the box of cake he bought was gone. He must've slipped it in the fridge already. She quietly went over to him as she snickered.

"Right, let's get to it, buddy! We better hurry up or else we're DOOMED!"

She tugged Vincent by the arm and hoisted him up, and ran out the door. The bright sunlight that streamed down on Midgar made her take a deep breath, and beam up a smile. Vincent himself smiled at the sight of her.

"So, any ideas, Vinnie? Where do we start?"

"Well, we'll have to buy the flour… and the strawberries… and the sugar…" Vincent said. But he remembered something. "… But then again it's just pretend, right?"

"RIGHT!... Well… is it? Ah. OH WELL!" Yuffie nodded, scowling determinedly. "To the grocery!"

Vincent cleared his throat and nodded. "Grocery? …" He wasn't one to buy his own ingredients or hang around in publicly cramped places like the supermarket, which was why he was usually at 7th. But, Tifa wasn't feeling so good and he and Yuffie had the same idea, so why not?

"Why, you don't like it there?..." Yuffie looked at him from head to toe. "I'd say with all your clothes, you'd love it there. It's air-conditioned!"

Vincent shook his head. "It's not that, I just…"

"Hunh…?" Yuffie raised a brow. "… … Don't tell me you're afraid of people?"

"No, no." Vincent chuckled. "…I'm just not so used to public places like the supermarket."

"Ehh." Yuffie snorted. "Stop being like CLOUD. C'mon, we're doing this for Tifa. She's really upset with the cake she tried to bake, and Cloud's birthday is tomorrow!"

Vincent saw the big, newly-constructed building up ahead: Edge Supermarket. He nodded.

"Alright then."

Yuffie had to link her arm around Vincent's, leading him through the countless hordes of people pushing carts here and there. She had to focus up ahead, and it was a good thing, because she didn't want to show him that she was blushing. Really. Awfully hard.

Vincent kept his head low as he followed Yuffie, almost stumbling at times, but he held onto Yuffie's arm and at the same time let her tug him around. They paused for a while to pick an empty cart from the side, and strolled around grabbing ingredients here and there.

"Butter, milk… eggs… flour…" Yuffie counted with her fingers and Vincent quietly tried to memorize each one. They shopped as quickly as they could, pushing through spaces between people and when they finally got all they needed, they lined up at the cashier. Yuffie slipped out her silk, purse from her shorts and picked out the exact amount for their payment. She and Vincent quietly calculated how much all their items were in total, before they would pass the barcode reader.

After spending much time in the supermarket, both headed back to 7th without hesitation. They hastily pushed away the items Tifa used, and set up the items right behind the bar, opening things here and there. Yuffie snickered and Vincent could only watch her.

"What?" Yuffie asked, noticing his gaze. "… Is something on my face?"

"… No." Vincent shook his head and helped out. He had a difficult time holding the whisker as Yuffie helped put the ingredients in, as they started to mix the batter. She giggled and he couldn't help but fluster slightly as she made fun of him quietly. He frowned. "It's the gauntlet."

"Gah, right." Yuffie grinned. "Here… let me mix it for you. You can go on and open the other stuffs."

Vincent did as he was told and quietly, they worked. He listened as Yuffie hummed a song, and tried to remember his _own_ birthday. His memory failed him, though.

"So what do you want when YOUR birthday comes, Vinnie?"

"Hm…" Vincent pondered. He took out the circular tin pan from the cabinet underneath, and a cookie sheet. "…I'm not entirely sure. Maybe a gun?"

… … And Yuffie gave him a "¬_¬" glare.

"Come on, something more sentimental!"

"Not too sentimental now, is it…" Vincent said. "…At least a firearm can protect you."

"The hell, Vinnie? Hm… well… yeah, see you have a point there, but it can backfire!" Yuffie laughed. "Something else. Like… a cake? A birthday card? Flowers? And hey, even guys can receive flowers. Or… a pendant? Bracelet? New clothes?..."

Vincent smiled. "I'm not so sure, Yuffie. Maybe a card would do."

Yuffie frowned. She realized not so many gave Vincent the credit, although he was admired. She remembered when he helped save Kalm and fought off Deepground and the Tsviets, and all that stuff about Omega that happened where she was also involved. She figured it was because Vincent preferred to stay in the shadows, because… well, that way, things were just… easier somewhat.

When the batter was done they poured it into the mold, and slipped it into the oven. They leaned against the counter, watching the dim light inside the oven as it cooked the batter.

"…Tell you what. When your birthday comes I'll tell Cloud and the others that we should have a party in Costa. Or better yet, in Gold Saucer!"

Vincent nodded. "… And for your birthday I'll…" He pondered. "… …Try my hand at baking."

Yuffie giggled. "Like this one? Nah, you don't have to. Materia's all I need and you know it!" She smirked and nudged him, and it made him smile. There was a pause that came between them and Yuffie wasn't so comfortable with it. "… I'm really glad we had the same wavelength today, Vincent. You don't talk much, so I'm really glad for today."

Vincent looked at her. "…So am I." He eyed the already-getting-plump batter inside after some 2 hours, and when it was ready they slipped it out of the oven.

Yuffie took the time to make the frosting and take out the strawberries, trim them and chop them right into tiny bits, and mixed them with the frosting. They set the cake bread aside to cool. Yuffie figured, since they were here, together, working on something to make a friend happy… maybe a conversation was best too.

"… You know, I always forget to say thank you to you." She noted, taking the spatula and spreading the frosting around the cake. Vincent took another spatula and helped her spread it. "I mean, for everything. Thanks for being a good friend… even if you don't say much. For being there for all of us."

Vincent smirked. "Cheesy." He sliced the cake bread into three so it had two layers, and placed frosting in between the layers.

"Hey!" Yuffie pouted. "I mean it, you! Not all the time I'm joking…"

Vincent chuckled.

"Pfft." Yuffie scowled as she concentrated on the cake. Vincent gave her a grinning, knowing look with a brow raised, and Yuffie couldn't help but smile back. "…Right." She stood and took a bit of the frosting from the bowl with a small spoon, and put it to his mouth. Vincent blinked. "Mind tasting it for me? So it's not too late to alter the taste, in case it needs more sweetness or something else, maybe."

Vincent eyed her and the whip cream-tipped spoon, and neared his mouth to it. He reached over to it with the tip of his tongue and swipe the frosting up. Later he lowered his mouth and took it in, rendering Yuffie speechless as she blinked. Even as she held the spoon, she could feel his tongue run over the metal, and suckle gently. And apparently, Vincent didn't want her to let go of the spoon itself.

Vincent stopped after a mere 5 seconds, and Yuffie looked away with her eyes wide and blinking.

"Oookay…"

"What's wrong?"

"Uh…" Yuffie dropped the spoon into the sink and beamed instead, trying to cover up. "SO! How does it taste like, Vincent? Does it need more sugar?"

Vincent slightly licked his lips unknowingly, and shook his head. "It's just right. Not… bland."

"Erm, okay!"

Nervous about it, she let Vincent work on the frosting around the cake and the cream, and picked one, still perfect strawberry. She bit on it and suckled, her now-full lips covering the item. Vincent couldn't help but listen to how her mouth covered the strawberry and suckled on it, and he cleared his throat, realizing he was blushing. Yuffie let go of it with a wet kiss and she noticed his gaze, and wanted to call him a pervert… but really. Come on now. Would she really do that? All she could do was blush and look away, popping the half-bitten strawberry now into her mouth.

Both now flustered, Vincent and Yuffie could only try and focus on the cake itself.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:**_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

**05: Short Cake**

When the cake was done, they wondered what to do with it.

Vincent pondered that the cake he and Yuffie just made was no match for the cake he bought at the shop earlier. Yuffie, on the other hand, wanted to taste the cake Vincent bought and compare it with the cake they baked. Vincent wanted to eat the cake, but which one? Yuffie wanted to share this cake with Vincent, but her face was too busy blushing and she had no idea what to do. Luckily, Tifa and the kids were upstairs… of course, they had to decide now.

"… Where do we put THIS cake?" Yuffie pointed at the just-finished cake they made. "And what do we do with the cake you bought? We now have two strawberry shortcakes!" 

"Well…" Vincent said, stepping close to her, "… we could eat this one. Besides, it was a plan after all to make Tifa use the cake I bought earlier."

Yuffie blinked. She analyzed the cake they just made. "Well… we did make this one after all…"

"Right…" Vincent looked in the same direction she was.

The whole ordeal of Yuffie eating that strawberry replayed in his mind. Yuffie, on the other hand, eyed the frosting and whipped cream of the cake.

… He eyed Yuffie sideways, who bit her lower lip in thought. Without hesitation, Vincent took the plate of cake they just made and lowered, sitting cross-legged behind the bar. Yuffie watched him quietly as he sat behind the bar, right in front of her.

"Really?" Yuffie huffed, frowning. "You're seriously going to eat it…?"

"Mind sharing it with me?" Vincent asked. He took out two forks and raised them at her.

Yuffie sighed and slumped her shoulders, shaking her head. Surrendering, she sat cross-legged in front of him too. "Fine, fine…" Yuffie took a fork out of his hand and together, they started picking at the cake. Yuffie eyed Vincent as he slipped a piece of the cake in his mouth, and Vincent eyed her as she picked out another strawberry from the top of one of the slices, smothered in frosting, and did the same thing as she did earlier.

"… You like strawberries?" he asked quietly, not letting the nervousness crack in this voice.

"I eat anything, really. But I like ramen the most."

"… You should put strawberries in your ramen."

Yuffie paused, giving him that "o_o…" look again. "Are you trying to make me laugh?" She laughed after. "What made you think that?"

Vincent shrugged. "You just seem to eat really well," he said. Yuffie blushed. "You're really healthy, if I may say so."

Yuffie laughed loud. Vincent couldn't help but fluster – he was embarrassed, and wondered if Yuffie could read what he was trying to say.

"What's so funny?"

"You know… you amuse me." Yuffie shook her head and ate another chunk from the cake, and frosting got all around her mouth. "You seriously think I dunno what you're trying to say, huh?"

Vincent flushed hard. Really hard. He wanted to shut his eyes and run away, but all he could do was lower his head instead and focus on the cake.

Yuffie started to feel bad. She knew he was really embarrassed and now was rendered shy; she wanted to take it back already. Maybe even stop teasing Vincent if the cues came. But honestly, she couldn't help it. He was just too adorable! And if anything… she wanted to admit what she really thought now.

"…Well…" she began, "… it's not like I don't want to hear it anyway, you know…"

The sharpshooter looked up at her. He paused, wondering if he heard it right, and the ninja could only smile.

"… Frosting."

"Huh?"

"You have…" Vincent motioned all around his mouth, so she could understand, "… frosting, all over."

"Oh, right."

Yuffie let her tongue slip out and licked where she could gather the frosting, letting it catch onto the tip of her tongue. She used her fingers to swipe it up where it was still gathered and licked, suckling the sugar off the edges of her fingernails, making sure her fingers and nails were clean as a cat's. Unknowingly, AGAIN, it had an effect on Vincent, who was blushing as hard as a beet could be. He almost dropped the fork from his mouth, and felt some sort of warmth, for some reason…

It wasn't as if Yuffie didn't notice either. She cleared her throat and punctured a strawberry with her fork, leaning up to Vincent, her face just inches away. With her eyes locked onto his, she offered the frosting-covered strawberry to his mouth. Just like how she ate it, or how anyone did, the cone-shaped tip was the side offered to him. He gladly parted his lips slightly, and accepted the item. Yuffie quietly admired how his almost-pale lips covered the berry.

"I'm guessing you like strawberries too, then…"

Vincent hummed in approval. "…Sometimes…"

She liked how his voice then sounded – muffled, and the sound seemed to hum as his lips covered the strawberry. He suckled gently before biting the half off, and Yuffie found her cheeks red. Vincent just smiled as he chewed.

"Well!" Yuffie said with a smile, licking her lips finally one last time, controlling the blush that came over her. "Um… we better clean up. Right." She nodded and stood, clearing the bar top away of the packets and things they used, and Vincent ate the last chunk of cake before they cleaned up.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:**_I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or its franchise, in any way possible. All characters and mentioned names belong to Square Enix._

**06: Effort**

Cid and Cait Sith busily set up the decorations around the overhead wooden beams of the bar. Barret was playing UNO with Denzel and Marlene after a long day's work of cleaning the whole of 7th Heaven, and Yuffie was busy helping Vincent push the round tables together so they were side by side, setting up the tables as well. Reeve managed to came by and so did Shelke. Tifa decided to close down 7th solely for Cloud's birthday.

After an hour or so, the rumble of that familiar motorcycle engine stopped as it parked outside 7th.

"Shhh! Quiet, here he comes! No one says anything until the lights are on!"

In the dark, huddled together in a corner, a small family of friends gathered, and waited as the celebrant entered. Tifa Lockhart, beaming as ever but nervous, quietly stood by the light switch to time the greeting right. When the doors opened, in came Cloud, his boots thudding against the floor. He didn't seem to feel that anyone was around, so he took the time to rest for a minute, taking his seat on one of the tables. After a while, though, he was restless.

"Tifa?... Denzel? Marlene?..."

No one answered. The kids tried so hard not to giggle and hugged Tifa, whose heart felt like it was about to burst. And then she flicked the lights on.

"_~HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CLOUD!"_

Cloud turned and saw all his friends gathered there, cheering him on and smiling happily. He admitted to himself that he felt warm inside, and as the kids brought the cake from the fridge together and Cid lit up the candles, he knelt to the kids' height. Denzel and Marlene beamed as they and everyone else behind them sang the birthday song, and Cloud's blue eyes shone like he never had a birthday before.

He blew the candles and stood, smiling slightly. "Thanks, everyone." He eyed the cake, which Denzel and Marlene placed on the table nearby. Next he looked at the oven – it seemed to be recently used. "Someone baked this?"

"TIFA!" Yuffie yelled, before anyone could ever say something. Tifa eyed her and cleared her throat, to which Yuffie just grinned. "Tifa baked it!"

Tifa wanted to say something, but she finally saw the sincere intent Yuffie was trying to do. She only smiled. "Well… I tried."

Vincent, standing behind Yuffie, leaned down to whisper in her ear as the rest just conversed.

"… The box of the cake, where is it?" he asked.

"Hm? … Oh." Yuffie grinned and covered her mouth, and whispered in his ear. "I threw it away."

Vincent blinked. "…Oh."

"That's right." Yuffie nodded. She eyed Tifa and Cloud, who just talked happily. She smiled at the sight of Denzel, Marlene, Cid, and everyone else sharing the cake. "That's because you're awesome, and I'm ninja."

Vincent chuckled. "… We should do this again."

Yuffie blinked, then pouted, and blushed. "Oh, right. For whose birthday this time?"

"The kids' birthdays."

… Yuffie figured they'd need more than how much they bought the day before, for when Denzel and Marlene's birthdays came around.


End file.
